Making the Right Choice
by PiratePrincess29
Summary: 9 and three quarters of a year after AWE: Jack shows up to find Elizabeth has a son, but it isn't Will's. Through his powers of persuasion, he convinces Elizabeth to leave with him before the one day ever comes. A JE one-shot. Con/crit is appreciated. Thx


**A/N: Just a quick one-shot. Please R&R? And I'm very sorry about all the dialogue!**

**Spoiler: Come on, who really cares about Will anyway?**

**Disclaimer: POTC belongs to Disney.**

* * *

"Don't wander too far from here, darling. It's not safe." Elizabeth said to her nine year old son. Her nine year old son that would see his father for the first time in a few months.

"Don't worry, Mum. I'm just going to look around." He replied, skipping through the town of Shipwreck Island.

She smiled at his need to explore. His curiosity. So like… so _un_like his father. Well, truth be told, she actually didn't know who his father was. He wasn't Will's, she recalled with a slight pang of sadness, deep in her heart. She tried so hard… but she would never be able to forget that awful day.

"_It's a girl, Mrs. Turner! Congratulations!" announced the nurse jollily. _

_Elizabeth smiled, grateful to have that dreadful experience over and done with. And when her little baby girl was placed in her arms and looked her mother in the eye for the very first time, she could have sworn she had fallen in love. The child's eyes sparkled in the light and she squealed happily as Elizabeth placed soft kisses all over her tiny face._

"_She's quite a beauty, if I may say so, Miss."_

"_That she is." Replied Elizabeth in wondrous astonishment._

"_What'll you name her?"_

_Elizabeth thought on this for a moment. She had never really prepared a name. In her opinion, it had all happened so fast, she barely had the time. _

"_What's your name, again?" asked Elizabeth._

_The nurse furrowed her eyebrows and replied, "Sarah. Sarah Lockwell."_

"_Sarah…" she echoed, trying it on for size. __"Sarah Turner. Sarah Jack… Jacqueline. __Jacqueline Sarah Turner."_

"_I'm sorry, Miss?"_

"_Jacqueline Sarah Turner." She repeated loudly and with a bright smile. "That will be her name."_

"_Why, I'm honored, Miss! No one's ever done this for me before!"_

"_It's a lovely name, I think. You hear that, Sarah? Mommy loves you."_

_Elizabeth admired her little girl until, suddenly, baby Sarah started shaking incessantly. Elizabeth's eyes widened and she handed her to the nurse who was equally worried._

"_I'll be right back!" she yelled, running to find the doctor._

_Those three crucial hours were the longest hours of Elizabeth's life. She had been so worried about her poor baby. And it didn't help when the nurse and the doctor walked in with solemn faces and a small sack…_

_She lost her child then. The child she had worked so hard to have. The child that was now lost forever. She never found out why it happened, just that it had been some kind of complication. A few days later, after she had recovered both physically and emotionally, she inquired about the possibility of adopting another child. A boy, seeing as how she would never let any other girl replace her dear Jacqueline Sarah. Luckily for her, there was a young boy, just a few days older than Sarah would have been that had been abandoned by his mother and when she looked into his brown eyes (brown like Sarah's… brown like Will's…), she knew that it was meant to be. James, she had named him. After the man who saved her life, of course. She grew to love James. And as he grew older, she shockingly realized that he looked quite a bit like her and Will, luckily. _

_Will would have to believe that he was theirs. It was the only reason she even considered adopting. She knew Will would be expecting a child and she didn't want to disappoint him. It was what all men wanted after all, though, wasn't it? A son? She would give that to him. It was the least she could do. And he would never have to know about Sarah. Not ever._

Elizabeth sighed. It was true, her initial reason for adopting James was for Will but after the first few weeks, she fell in love with him and his quirky manner. And his hopeless devotion to his mother. From a very young age, dear James expressed his intelligence quite brilliantly. He was a very smart child and she loved him. Little by little, he was replacing Sarah in her heart and, although it pained her to allow such a thing to happen, she knew it was for the best. She couldn't possibly hold onto the past forever. And as far as James knew, he was her only son. Her only child. Her real child. And she would keep it that way.

* * *

Jack had just docked in with the Black Pearl, after having retrieved just a few years earlier. He had run into Captain Turner (he laughed at that notion every time he said it) quite a few times and had promised to check on Elizabeth. A promise which he would keep… eventually. About a week before, he decided that he'd get the inevitable reunion over with and see how she was doing on her little island.

_Having a grand time, I imagine._

_Or living in a lonely semblance of hell._

_And you'd be the one to fix that, aye?_

_I couldn't care less._

_Actually mate, seeing as ye care a lot, ye could._

_Oh, shut up._

He was the only one to come ashore as he expected it wouldn't take very long to see whether or not she was doing alright. In reality, he had a plan. He was going to kidnap Elizabeth and force her to stay on the Pearl with him. That was his plan a few months after Will became Captain. Nine years passed by so quickly and he never had a chance to put his plan into action and he doubted it would work now. He hadn't had any contact with Elizabeth whatsoever except for that one letter he sent her, enclosed with some water from The Fountain of Youth. Much to his dismayed surprise, she never replied back.

It read:

_Dearest Elizabeth,_

_I hope this reaches you without any trouble. Yes, I know what you're thinking. Can it be? Did he really do it? Aye, I did it, Lizzie. I found the Fountain of Youth and I couldn't resist not giving you any of it. You would have had the time of your life, Lizzie. It was an adventure and I must say that the Black Pearl isn't the same without you, Luv. We all miss you. I miss you. I hope things are going well and that you're safe. How many years left? Four or five, isn't that right? Well, drink the water, Luv. You'll be immortal. The immortal Pirate King Captain Elizabeth Swann. I mean, Elizabeth Turner, that is. I'll tell you, Lizzie. It's quite a feeling knowing you're invincible. That no force in the entire ocean, the entire world (See, Luv? I remember. Do you?) can stop you. I'll come check on you some time or another. Perhaps whisk you away and off into another adventure. Wouldn't that be nice, Luv? Hope the years continue to be kind to you and please, please don't do anything stupid now that you're immortal. There are other ways to suffer, my dear, and I don't wish any of them upon you._

_All my love,_

_Captain Jack Sparrow _

Little did he know that Elizabeth kept that letter under her pillow since the day she first received it.

Determined to find her, he began asking around town but to no avail. Lizzie must really be intent on having her privacy, he thought amusedly wondering why the Pirate King would want to hide herself from her subjects.

He approached a man who looked like a merchant and smiled kindly.

"Excuse me, good man." The man looked up. "Do ye know where I might perhaps find a Miss Elizabeth Swann? That is a Mrs. _Turner_?" he asked.

"No, sorry, Sir. I'm afraid I don't." replied the old man, smiling apologetically.

Jack nodded his head thanking the man and turned around, coming face to face with a young man no older than ten years old.

"Excuse me, Sir. Did you say you were looking for Mrs. Turner?"

Jack narrowed his eyes and studied the boy carefully. _How does he know my Lizzie? My Lizzie? Look at yerself, Jackie. You're a mess. She's not yours and she never will be. _

"Who's asking?" he replied to the young lad.

"My name's James, Mr…"

"Captain, Son. Captain Sparrow."

"Sparrow? As in Captain Jack Sparrow?"

"Aye… How do ye know Lizzie? I mean Elizabeth."

"She's my mum."

And Jack's face paled instantly. Lizzie… A mum… with a child. Her child… Will's child. He wanted to puke at the notion of her and Will… but then he looked down at the little boy with new eyes and noticed that he looked, or rather didn't look at all like Elizabeth or Will. And the boy wasn't lying, he could tell. So who was this boy? And how did Elizabeth get to be his mother? Or… perhaps he was Will's? After all, he might have taken after Will's father or someone in Elizabeth's family. He shouldn't have come to such comforting conclusions right away just because they made things better.

"Can ye take me to her?"

"Of course, Captain!" replied the little boy excitedly as he started in the other direction.

"Wait, lad. What'd ye say yer name was? An' how do ye know who I am?"

"I'm James. Jonathon James Turner. And Mum talks about you all the time." The boy replied smilingly.

Jack could swear he felt his heart warm up as he thought about what he had just heard. The boy's name was Jonathon? Lizzie named him after me. She named him after me! Jack was a shorter version of Jonathon and he always liked it anyway but she probably knew Will wouldn't approve so she named her son Jonathon, after him.

"Where's your mother?"

"She's just up the hill, Captain. Follow me."

He watched the boy walk quickly for a moment before finally deciding to follow him, anxious to see Lizzie again. If she even was Lizzie anymore.

Elizabeth was growing worried. Where was her son? Where had he run off to? She always worried so much about James. He was her treasure, her life. She would do anything to protect him. Had she known her son would grow up to be so curious and brave, she would have saved the enchanted water for him to drink. But it was too late to go back on her actions. She had to live with them. Forever.

She let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding when little James came running up the hill to their cliff-side home. Her smile faltered, though, when she saw a figure also approaching her, following closely behind James. It was only when she squinted her eyes that she realized it was Jack and before she had a chance to react, she felt a smile tugging fiercely at her lips. Jack, too, was smiling as he approached her, glad to see that she was alright. His smile continued to shine when he noticed that she hadn't aged a bit, meaning she had taken the water and was now immortal.

"Jack." She said smilingly, warmth radiating from her amber eyes. "I can't believe… what are you doing here?" she asked, nibbling nervously on her lower lip.

"Well, luv, it was my intention to show up, sweep ye off your feet, kidnap ye, take ye aboard the Pearl and sail off merrily into the horizon but it's all been soiled, hasn't it." He replied, nodding to the young lad at his side.

"James, would you be a love and run inside? Mummy needs to talk to her… friend."

"Sure, Mum!" he agreed, running into the house, but hurrying to the window to maintain a good view.

"While I can't say I don't particularly disapprove of that delightful plan of yours, I'm afraid I can't acquiesce to your request."

"Seein' as though it's a request, your agreement isn't particularly necessary. I'm a pirate, luv. I could just as well take what I want without askin'."

"Yes, you could. But then you would have an immortal and powerful sea captain after you. We wouldn't want that, now, would we?"

"Ye look the same, Lizzie-luv. You're beautiful as ever."

She smiled faintly. "Now's not the time for flattery, Jack. That time has come and gone. I have a son, now." She said, eyes narrowed and brows furrowed.

"I can see that. Is he Will's?"

"Does he look like he's Will's?"

"That's why I'm askin'."

"No. I don't know who's he is, actually."

"What do ye mean?"

"I mean… I did have a child that was mine once. But…"

"But?"

"But she died." She replied grimly, tears threatening to be shed mercilessly.

"Oh, Lizzie…" he said, reaching out to cup her face, noticing how she leaned into his touch.

"I'd rather not talk about it. But if you really want to know…"

"I do. I need to know what happened, luv. Did someone… did somebody…"

"No. Nothing of the sort. Jacqueline Sarah… yes, I did name her after you… she died a few moments after being placed in my arms. The nurse took her away, she started coughing and shaking and when she returned, they told me she was gone."

"Elizabeth… that's awful. And you had to go through it alone. Why didn't you write?"

"I tried. But then I heard that the Pearl was no longer in your control and I didn't want

Barbossa to find out I was helpless. I didn't know where you were."

"But you got me letter, obviously." He said, gesturing to her and her young physique.

"And I've treasured it ever since. I just never had the courage to write back. I wanted to,

Jack. I really did. But… I didn't know. I mean… what do you write to someone you care so deeply about but know that things could never work out between you?

His face was blank. "Had ye written that to me, luv, I would have come immediately. I would've given ye the stars, Lizzie, and proven ye wrong."

"I don't doubt it. But I didn't and so neither did you. I keep that letter with me, Jack.

Always. It means so very much to me. James always wondered why I seem more attached to it than the che-…" she trailed off, infuriated by the smug look on Jack's face.

He chuckled. "Sorry, luv. Do continue."

"I'd rather not until I know why you're smiling like that!" she snapped at him with indignation.

"It's just that… ye named your daughter and your son after me. I can't help but feel a little proud." Her smile, much to his absolute pleasure, returned. "Where did the lad come from?"

"I didn't want Will to return to a wife and no child, seeing as how he wanted a baby so badly. And not just that. I was lonely. I had been through nine months of anticipation, awaiting someone that would keep me company and love me. And when she was taken away so abruptly I knew I needed somebody because I had all that love and no one to give it to. No one to nurture, to watch grow up. A few days later, I finally decided on taking in a child that had been abandoned at the hospital. And here we are."

"You're an angel, luv. Doin' all that for a boy ye never met. Don't even know who his parents are and yet…"

"I _do _know who his parents are. _I _am his mother and _Will _is his father. That's what he's been told, that's what I now believe. James is a wonderful boy. I love him. He's the angel in all of this, taking care of me. Putting up with not having a father for nine years."

"Oh, that's right. Will comes back this year, doesn't he?"

"Yes, he does." She replied solemnly.

"Ye don't seem too happy about it, then."

"I'm not. I haven't seen the man in ten years! I've been through hell. Do you know how many times I've wanted to take that bloody chest and throw it into the sea? The incessant beating in my head day in and day out? I hate it. And I hate him for leaving me with such a task. Such a guilt if I were to abandon it altogether. I hate him for that. Yet he still thinks I'll be here, waiting for him patiently, madly in love as I once was. Even now I'm not sure if I ever was. I was foolish. And stupid to think… to think that a pair of shackles would be enough to kill what I was feeling, what I didn't want to feel. Because I still feel it, you know. It wasn't just lust, Jack. There was more. We… we were more. Do you know how many times I've wante--…" she stopped as Jack's lips descended on hers with an unhesitant and feverish passion.

When he finally pulled back, he smirked lightly, amused by her shocked and flushed face.

"Do ye know for how long I've wanted to do that again?"

"I should go check on James." She said, looking to the side, embarrassed. "Will you be staying with us?"

"Only if you'll have me, luv."

"Just as long as you're gone before Will arrives." He frowned, a hurt look on his face. "Oh, it's only for one day, Jack. You'll be back with us before dusk. I just don't want him to get suspicious."

"Actually, the Pearl's here." He said hesitantly.

"Oh? Is it? You'll be staying there then, won't you." She replied, her tone of voice sad when she said what was more of a statement than a question.

"You're always welcome on the Pearl." After a moment of consideration, he went on. "So is he. Ye both could come away with me, sail like we used to. He could have a real father."

"I don't know about that." She said, shaking her head confusedly.

"Think about it, luv. What do ye owe dear William anyway? He left ye here all by yourself. Ye already said you're mad at him. Show him just how mad ye are."

"I won't betray him if only for James' sake. What would he think, seeing his mother with another man?"

"Oh, I think the lad would understand."

"I can't, Jack. You know very well what could happen, what would happen were I ever to do such a thing. He would never forgive me."

"William?"

"James. He loves his father. I've done it all for him."

"Will ye come with me, Lizzie? Or will ye wait another ten years. Will your son go twenty years without feeling what's like to be at sea? Don't ye want him to be a pirate? Don't you want to be a pirate?"

"I'm the pirate king, if you've not forgotten."

"How could I forget, luv? It's all because of me, isn't it?"

"James will learn. In time. He doesn't need to be pushed into a world he doesn't know. He's a good boy with a kind heart. Let him be that way."

"Bein' a pirate won't change his good heart, luv. It didn't change William's."

"Yes it did. Jack, let's not talk about this now. I don't feel up to it."

"Want to know what I feel up to?"

"Not particularly."

"Come away with me, luv. The Pearl needs ye. I need ye. Don't make me live another day without ye."

"What about the curse? Without me, it won't be broken."

"Don't ye understand, Lizzie? It'll never be broken. Calypso only said that to make you stay, to make you suffer all these years. She isn't that kind. The Dutchman must have a captain. He will never be free."

"What do I tell James?"

"Tell him… Tell him his father came home."

"Jack?" she asked with shining eyes.

"Aye, luv?"

"Welcome to the family." She said, kissing him passionately.

Will did eventually show up only to find an empty house and left with a broken heart. Jack, James, and Elizabeth had sailed off just a few days before he actually made port. Instead of just one day of happiness, Elizabeth had a lifetime of happy days. An infinite life-time. Jack even found a way to make little James immortal too, a boy he had come to know and love as his own son, the one that William Turner II never found out about. Elizabeth was finally happy and occasionally, her thoughts went to Will and she wondered if he was alright but then Jack would come and give her a kiss and that was all she knew. She had made her choices as a Sparrow and she would have to live with them. Have to? No. She _wanted_ to live with them. And she would. _Forever_.


End file.
